I Promised
by MistressDarkness
Summary: Alternate ending to the season 2 finale. Kenzi put on a brave face, ignoring the pain. She made a promise to Bo, and she was not going to break it. I can't say anymore without spoiling people who have yet to watch the finale
1. Chapter 1

Author's Note: My muse got the best of me again. Here I am starting a new fic. The season 2 finale inspired so many ideas, that I finally had to write one of them. This takes place right after Trick wakes up and Kenzi unbinds everyone. Enjoy & please review!

Chapter 1

"Thou cannot harm them Bo," Kenzi chanted, her eyes never leaving her best friend. Bo's power swirled around the succubus. She could literally feel it crackling in the air. It frightened her. If this ritual didn't work, she could lose Bo to the darkness forever. The very thought of her friend, the woman she considered to be her sister, turning on her made her heart clench. She wouldn't be able to fight Bo, not her. But Bo had made her promise to kill her if she got out of control. Kenzi's hands squeezed Hale's arm tightly. She steeled herself. She would do it if she had to, but she prayed that it wouldn't come to that.

Bo swayed on her feet, her eyes shifting from electric blue back to their normal chocolate brown. She collapsed, Lauren and Dyson both running to her side. Kenzi stayed where she was, not quite trusting her legs to make it that far. Trick assured everyone that Bo would be okay. The ritual had worked. Still, they all waited anxiously until Bo's eyes fluttered back open. Dyson and Lauren eased her up into a sitting position. The succubus held a hand to her forehead, a dull pain resided from the overload of power. She dropped her arm back to her side, her eyes scanning the area, making sure everyone was alright. Her eyes fell on Kenzi, a small smile on her lips, "Thank you for bringing me back. I knew I could count on you"

Kenzi returned the smile, relief spreading through her. Without any immediate danger surrounding her and her friends, the adrenaline that had kept her going quickly dissipated. Her head began to spin, like the last time she had performed the ritual to set Ryan free from Bo's hold on him. Her vision clouded over.

Hale felt Kenzi's body go limp. Thankfully she was still holding onto his arm so he was able to catch her before she fell. "Kenzi!" he cried, sliding to the ground with her in his arms. The movement was all too familiar and he could already feel himself starting to panic again. It had only been twenty minutes ago that he was holding her, begging her to fight for her life.

"Kenz!" Bo yelled, forgetting her own feinting spell just moments ago and rushing to her best friend's side. She checked for a pulse, "It's weak." The ritual itself wouldn't have done this. Besides passing out, she was completely fine the last time. There were no other side effects. She looked back at Trick, hoping he would tell her it would just wear off like her symptoms did when she unbound Ryan, but he seemed just as confused as she was. He shook his head, unable to offer an explanation.

Dyson followed Bo. Once he neared her, the air was thick with the smell of blood. "Shit," he cursed, aggravated with himself that he had failed to notice it earlier during all of the commotion. "She's bleeding."

"What?" Bo's eyes looked down, seeing her blood-soaked clothes. "Jesus," she whispered. "What happened?" she demanded, fear gripping her heart.

Vex mumbled something about humans being weak, but it was Val who spoke up, knowing her brother was too concerned over the human to reply. "We ran into Hale in one of the rooms we had previously been in. There was a body on the floor, we ignored it. Kenzi was standing near the dead man when he lunged forward, cutting her deep with his dagger."

Lauren carefully moved Kenzi's clothing away from the injury. Blood was oozing out of it again. "Damn it, she reopened the wound."

Hale looked into the doctor's eyes, ashamed that he had failed Kenzi. The effect of his siren whistle had not been strong enough to hold up in battle. "It didn't work," he muttered. "I'm so sorry lil' momma." He brought her hand up, kissing her knuckles gently.

Lauren shook her head. "Hale, it's not your fault. Without you, she would already be dead." Bo starred at the doctor then shifted her gaze to Hale, shocked at how serious Kenzi's wound had been and possibly was again. "Hell, we probably would all be dead if you hadn't used your whistle." She stared into Bo's questioning gaze. "There were berserkers coming for us. We weren't going to leave her Bo," Lauren assured her. The succubus nodded in understanding. A small part of her was scared of how they had put themselves at risk, but a much larger part of her was glad to know that they had all refused to leave without Kenzi. Lauren continued applying more gauze to the injury to help staunch the bleeding.

"Why didn't you just get Kenzi out of here?" Bo was thankful her friends had taken care of Kenzi, but she was also pissed that they had brought her directly into the fight with the Garuda in her condition.

"We tried! She refused to leave without you," Laruen answered, applying pressure to the young girl's side.

"You should have just carried her out then!" Bo yelled, frustrated at the situation. She felt a light touch. She looked down to see Kenzi's blood-stained hand resting on her arm.

Kenzi's breathing was shallow. "I promised," she breathed.

Bo's demeanor instantly softened, knowing the meaning behind that simple sentence. "Kenzi…"

Her head rolled to the side, her eyes remaining closed. She repeated, "I promised you."

Bo cupped the girl's cheek in her hand, "not at the risk of your own life. You're important too Kenzi." The succubus felt guilty; she never would have made Kenzi promise anything if she had known that this would be the outcome. Bo was so concerned over turning evil and killing her friends that she forgot to stop and think about the lengths Kenzi would go to in order to save Bo's life. She knew Kenzi would die for her, and that thought scared the shit out of her. It terrified her even more that it could be happening right now.

A small smile graced Kenzi's lips before she began coughing. She squeezed her eyes shut tight against the pain that erupted in her side. A red rivulet trickled out of the corner of her mouth. Her small body went lax once more, falling into unconsciousness. The force of the coughing pushed more blood out of the gash.

Lauren cursed. "Hale, do you have enough strength left to cauterize her wound again?"

Hale looked up, his eyes sad. "No, but I might be able to slow the bleeding."

"That's all we need right now. If we can get the bleeding under control, then we can get her back to the lab where all of my supplies are."

Hale repositioned himself to get a better aim. His whistle began cauterizing the sides of the wound, but he was unable to close it completely. When he felt his vision begin to blur, he finally pulled back. He panted with the effort it had taken, sweat on his brow. Dyson put a hand on his shoulder to steady his partner. Bo rubbed his arm in thanks. Hale nodded back.

Lauren began packing her supplies back up. "Okay, someone needs to carry her, but be very careful and don't jostle her around or we'll be right back where we started."

Bo immediately began to slide her arms under Kenzi's back and the crook of her legs. Dyson crouched down next to her, "Let me take her, you're still weak from battle."

"No," she said, carefully lifting the girl up. Kenzi's head lolled, resting against Bo's shoulder. The older woman stared down at her for a moment, her eyes a mixture of worry and sadness.

"Bo-" he tried again, only to be cut off.

"I said no!" Her voice more harsh than she meant to be, her words leaving no room for argument. She was the reason Kenzi was like this, and she was going to take care of her. She cradled Kenzi protectively against her chest, following the others out of the maze and back to the car.


	2. Chapter 2

Author's Note: I'm so glad you guys like this so far. Some people were asking me about Kenzi's arm and if I would address that in this story. I will mention it in here, but I have a whole other fic idea for her arm. I'd rather not push Kenzi from one emergency right into the next so quickly. And plus, this way you guys get two stories instead of just one ;) Then I can focus solely on Kenzi's lil Norn problem. Enjoy, and please leave a review. They make me smile...a lot.

Chapter 2

The group piled into Dyson's black SUV. "Lay her down gently on the back seat," Lauren instructed.

Bo shook her head, "no I've got her." She climbed into the back, still holding Kenzi in her arms. She eased them both into the seat. Bo looked down at the frail girl in her lap, smoothing her raven hair out. "You're going to be okay, I promise _you_ that," she whispered into Kenzi's ear. Bo wasn't going to let her go, physically or metaphorically.

Lauren crawled into the back to keep an eye on Kenzi, with Trick following suit. Vex and Val jumped in the rear of the SUV, behind the back seats. Hale slid into the front seat. Dyson sped away as quickly as possible without jostling his passengers too much. He needed to get to the lab fast, but making Kenzi's predicament worse in the process would not help anyone.

Bo felt her best friend start trembling. She placed the back of her hand against Kenzi's cheek, shocked at the drastic temperature change. "Do you have a blanket in here? She's freezing." Bo asked.

"In the back," Dyson answered, his eyes still focused on the road.

Val rummaged through some of the belongings next to her. Vex shifted to see if anything he was sitting on could help. He would never in his life admit it, but he admired the spunky girl. She was the only human who knew what he was and yet still defied him. Her attitude reminded him vaguely of himself. Val finally came across a neatly folded light quilt. She passed it up to Trick who quickly laid it over Kenzi, tucking in the edges to keep her body heat in. "It's because of her blood loss," Lauren explained.

Bo's eyes became glossy, leaning down to touch her forehead to Kenzi's. "Stay with me, Kenz." The car hit a pothole, causing Kenzi to hiss in pain. "Watch it!" Bo yelled at Dyson.

"Sorry," he ground his teeth, hating that he had inadvertently hurt his wounded passenger. Five minutes later, the Ash's compound came into view. He pulled up as close as he could to the door. Everyone exited the car quickly, making room for Bo to slide out with Kenzi still cradled to her chest. They rushed to the lab, Hale opening the doors for them to run through.

Bo eased Kenzi down on one of the hospital beds, her pale skin matching the white sheets. Lauren ushered everyone out, except for Bo. The doctor turned to her, "I need your help. Carefully pull her jeans down away from the injury. We'll worry about changing her clothes after we seal the wound." Bo nodded, moving to shimmy Kenzi's skin tight jeans to just below her hips. She made sure her movements didn't pull at the damaged skin. Lauren slid the curtain around the bed closed, while Bo took off the stained corset. Lauren removed the gauze before cutting Kenzi's layered shirts, peeling them away from her skin. The succubus put the corset off to the side, her eyes automatically moving to stare at the large gash. She grimaced; it looked worse now that it was completely exposed. The skin bruised around the edges. Dried blood caked her abdomen. She swore she could see some of Kenzi's internal organs, and possibly the beginning of her pelvis. Lauren handed Bo a pair of gloves, "are you sure you're okay to do this?" Lauren knew Bo wanted to help, and honestly she needed her assistance, but she was worried Bo's emotions may get in the way of what needed to be done.

"I'm fine, just help her. I'll do anything," Bo assured her. She slipped the gloves over her hands, grabbing the antiseptic wipes the doctor handed her.

"I need you to clean around her wound and to remove all of the dried blood. I need to get a better look at what we're dealing with here." The blonde began cleaning the injury itself. Kenzi squirmed involuntarily, her body reacting to the burning sensation. Lauren hoped the girl would remain unconscious until they finished. She didn't want Kenzi to feel any more pain than she already did. Lauren couldn't use anesthesia on her if she did wake up for fear that her weak body would fall into a coma. She reached for the medical instruments on the tray next to her.

A nurse walked in, startling Bo. She forced herself to relax; her body was instinctively on overprotective mode. The nurse hooked up a heart monitor to Kenzi's finger, adjusting the dials on the machine. He pulled out a syringe, flicking the end of it. The needle entered Kenzi's blood vein in the crook of her arm, all of the clear liquid being pushed into her body. He inserted an IV into her hand with skilled precision before leaving once more. Bo read the numbers on the machine, trying to understand what it all meant. "Lauren?" she questioned.

Lauren looked up at the succubus, following her gaze to the monitor. "She's very weak Bo," she answered, trying to compartmentalize her emotions so they wouldn't interfere with her work.

Bo nodded, hearing what she already knew to be true. A small part of her was hoping Lauren would tell her otherwise. She threw away the soiled wipe she was holding. Before she could grab another cloth, an unwelcome noise emitted from the machine. Bo's head shot up at the long beep; Kenzi was flat lining. "No!" Bo screamed, looking at Lauren for answers. The doctor ran from the room to get the defibrillator, coming back with the nurse in tow. Bo backed away, her shaking gloved hand flying to her mouth. "Please god no," she whispered. "Don't take her from me."

"Clear!" Lauren shouted, pressing the paddles to Kenzi's chest. Her petite body jumped from the shock. They repeated the motion again and again, without success.

Bo gritted her teeth, stepping forward to push the nurse aside. "Move," she demanded.

"Bo, what are you doing?" Lauren questioned.

"What I have to," she answered, cupping Kenzi's cheek in her palm.

"Bo," Lauren grabbed her arm. "She needs to be breathing for it to work."

"Then I'll make her breath." Bo leaned over the pale human and began to administer CPR. She pressed on Kenzi's chest, before moving to her mouth. She pushed air into her lungs, forcing a small wisp of blue with it. If Kenzi wouldn't breath on her own, Bo would force the chi into her lungs. She dug the heels of her palms into the girl's chest again. "Kenzi, stay with me! You can't leave, I won't let you!" Tears stung at her eyes. She took a deep breath, releasing the chi-mixed air into her best friend's body. She remained lifeless. "Damn it! Breath Kenzi! That's all I need you to do and I'll do the rest." She continued compressions. "Please, come back to me." Inhaling quickly, she pressed her mouth over Kenzi's. Tears flowed freely down her face, dripping onto her friend. Kenzi lurched forward, gasping for air. Immediately she began coughing, her system desperate for oxygen. "Oh thank god," Bo breathed. She helped to settle the girl back down. "Hey it's okay. I'm here Kenz, you're going to be just fine. I've got you." Her hand went back to Kenzi's cheek, caressing her soft skin with her thumb.

Lauren sighed in relief, before checking the heart monitor. "Bo, she's not out of the woods yet. Her vital signs are still at a very dangerous level. Can you keep her alive while I stitch up her wound?" Bo nodded. The doctor picked her abandoned instruments back up, carefully threading the material through the needle.

Kenzi's breathing was raspy and erratic. Bo tilted her head towards her own, pushing more chi past the girl's blue lips. She had to keep Kenzi's heart beating. If she flat lined again, Bo doubted they would be as lucky as last time. Either way, she wouldn't let it get to that point again. Kenzi gritted her teeth, hissing as Lauren pulled the skin taught to close the gash. She tossed her head from side to side. "Kenzi, listen to me. Listen to my voice. I know it hurts, but I need you to focus on breathing. Can you do that for me?" The young woman nodded slowly, before squeezing her eyes shut against the pain. Her heart rate quickened. "Can't you give her anything?" she directed to Lauren.

The blonde stayed completely focused on the task at hand. "We already gave her morphine, there's nothing more I can do. Any larger of a dose and we risk further complications, ones she may not survive." She didn't want to tell Bo the details of what could happen, especially with the close call they had just moments ago.

Blue energy spiraled around itself before entering Kenzi's body. Her heart rate slowed back down, her other vitals returning to a more stable level. Whenever they began to rise again, Bo used her succubus powers to return them to some semblance of normal. Bo reached for Kenzi's hand, intertwining their fingers. She could feel Kenzi squeeze her hand back in appreciation with what little strength she had left.

"I'm sorry Kenzi, I'm almost done. You're doing great," Lauren told her while looping the needle through her irritated skin one last time.

Bo pulled her mouth back from Kenzi's, panting. She stumbled, her legs wanting to give out. Her hand landed on the bed next to their patient's head.

"Bo! You're still weak from battle. You can't give that much of your chi away," Lauren tried to reason.

Bo's determined eyes focused on Lauren's, "I'll give her all of it if I have to." And she meant every word.

"Bo, you won't be able to help her if you pass out. You could die if you give too much!"

"She risked everything for me, why shouldn't I do the same?" Bo argued. Lauren relented, knowing there was no way she was going to get through to the brunette, not when it came to Kenzi. She always knew those two would do anything for each other, even die for the other, she just hoped it didn't come to that today.

Lauren clipped the thread, grabbing gauze and surgical tape to cover the wound. Once she was finished, she exited the area, returning with a chair. She slide it right up to the bedside. "Here, at least sit down before you fall over." She guided Bo down into it. The brunette never let go of Kenzi's hand.

Kenzi groaned, turning her head towards Bo. Cold sweat covered her forehead. Her pale blue eyes slowly cracked open. "You really gotta stop coming up with excuses to kiss me," she murmured.

Bo chuckled, happy to hear her best friend's voice. "Hey! I had a pretty good reason," she smirked.

"mmmm," Kenzi answered. Her body slowly relaxed, falling back into a fitful sleep.


	3. Chapter 3

Author's note: Thank you to everyone who is reading and reviewing this fic, I really appreciate it. I wanted to get this one up since I'm devoting most of my time to writing the battle scene for Tortura (which should be up sometime this week). Also, apologies for any medical mistakes I make in this story. Two of my friends are nurses and would probably smack me for getting this stuff wrong lol. Enjoy and as always, please review!

CHAPTER 3

Dyson leaned against the wall in the hallway watching his partner pace back and forth. He strained his ears to try to hear what was going on inside the lab. Val sat in a chair next to Trick, her leg crossed over her knee. Vex stood off to the side, obviously uncomfortable. Finally he spoke up, "well I think it's time I high tail it out of here. Not only am I on light fae territory, but I'm in the Ash's compound. I'm sure that alone would send me to the chopping block."

"Don't you want Lauren to take a look at your arm first?" Trick asked. "I'm sure we can make a small exception. After all, you did help save all of the fae from the Garuda."

Vex pondered it for a moment, staring at the door to the lab. "Nah, I can take care of it. Besides, I think she's going to have her hands full for a while with the half-pint. Last thing I want to do is barge in there and get in the way of an angry Garuda-killing succubus." His answer was partially true, but he also didn't want to distract them from saving the human and inadvertently cause her death in the process. "Thanks for the fun times," he waved with his good arm, walking down the hall towards the exit.

Dyson watched the mesmer go, confused by his actions. Why follow them back to the Ash's compound in the first place? And since when did he ever put the needs of others before his own? He shook his head. He had more important things to worry about, namely the young woman fighting for her life.

Val sighed, Hale's pacing wearing thin on her nerves. She knew exactly what her brother was thinking. "This isn't your fault Hale."

"Isn't it?" He stopped to stare at her. "The one time she really needed me, needed me to help her, and I couldn't even do that properly." He pointed at the lab, "if she dies in there, that's on me!"

"No it's not!" Val got up, standing in front of him. "You saved her life. Yes, the wound reopened, but that was bound to happen when we went to the fight instead of leaving. But it was her choice Hale, not yours. And yes we could have dragged her out kicking and screaming, but then we would have lost Bo. Kenzi would have hated us for forcing her to leave." Hale searched her face, wanting to believe his sister, but he couldn't rid the guilt he felt. "She's in there alive right now, and so is Bo. And that's because of you."

He took a deep breath, trying to reign in his emotions. "I know…I just…" He let out the air in frustration. His guilt stemmed further back than just this incident. By using his whistle to close her wound, he had hoped he was also making up for the last time they faced the Garuda. Hale had intentionally left Kenzi behind with Dyson and the berserkers. It was an official order given by the Blood King to bring Bo back safely no matter the cost, but that cost, Kenzi's life, was too great a price to pay. He still couldn't believe he had just left her there, knowing she wouldn't have a chance if the berserkers had seen her. After all they had been through and done for each other, he had treated her like she was expendable. He had treated her like every other fae treats humans, like her life was insignificant. He was disgusted with himself. He prided himself on being pro-human equality, and he had thrown away all of his beliefs in that one moment. And he didn't do it for just any human, he did it to Kenzi, the one human he cared for above all others. That night, he had thrown up, literally making himself sick over the whole situation. Nightmares of what could have happened to her plagued his mind, of the horrible things the berserkers and the Garuda could have done to her. And the whole thing would have been his fault. He was the one who saw her turn back, and he was the one who decided to leave her there. In all honesty, he was surprised Bo was even still talking to him.

He looked back at his sister, knowing he couldn't tell her any of this. She was the last person who would understand his guilt. She despised humans, and had made it known to Kenzi that she was lower than dirt in her eyes. Val would only try to reassure Hale that he had made the right move in leaving Kenzi behind. Those words coming out of his sister's mouth would only sicken him more. He just smiled sadly at her, "I'm just worried about her."

"I know," she answered sympathetically rubbing his arm.

"You can go home you know, you don't have to wait here. I know you don't like Kenzi anyways," he told her, a little harsher than he meant to.

"You're right, I don't like her," she responded flatly. "But I can clearly see that you do, and that's enough for me." The siren stared at Val, shocked to hear that she was accepting Kenzi as part of his life. "Look, I'm not saying we're going to suddenly become best buds, but I'll back off and be civil towards her."

This was a giant step forward for his sister, the one who had recently repeatedly insulted Kenzi and who had enjoyed doing it. "That's all I'm asking. Thank you," sincerity laced his voice.

"I saw how upset and worried you were when she was injured, and I can see it now. I just want you to be happy, even if it is with one of them."

"Val," Hale warned softly. He didn't appreciate her 'us versus them' reference.

"Sorry," she answered sheepishly. "Old habits die hard. I'll work on it."

"I appreciate it. Seriously though, why don't you go home? We could be here for a long time." He could see her hesitation. "I'm okay, I promise."

"You sure," she asked.

"Positive. Go get some rest."

"Okay, let me know if anything changes." Hale nodded before hugging his sister goodbye. She turned down the hall, following the same path Vex had taken.

Hale sauntered over towards the chair Val had vacated, slumping down into it. He put his elbows on his knees, resting his head in his hands.

"Good, I was hoping you would sit down or else the new Ash's first decree, when chosen, would be to fix the path worn into his floor," Trick smiled, trying to lighten the mood. Hale just patted the older man's knee in appreciation for his efforts.

Dyson noticeably stiffened, obviously having picked up on something their fae abilities couldn't. It was a long moment before he relaxed again. He looked back at the worried faces of his companions. "She's alive," he answered simply, not wanting to alarm them to the close call he had just heard. If Dyson told them Kenzi had flat lined, he wasn't sure he could keep both fae from running through those doors. He and Lauren had their differences, but right now, she was the only one who could save Kenzi. He knew better than to interfere.

... ... ... ... ...

Lauren walked around Bo, who had accidentally drifted off to sleep. The blonde knew she needed her rest after giving away so much of her chi, not to mention the huge battle they had just fought and won. Lauren proceeded to remove Kenzi's boots before slipping her jeans all the way off. She needed to get the young woman out of these filthy clothes and into a sterile hospital gown. The last thing they needed now was an infection. When Lauren moved to take Kenzi's arm warmers off, Bo's eyes fluttered open. "What," she began, uncertain of what just happened. "Lauren?" she inquired upon seeing the doctor in her lab coat. Her eyes settled on her best friend lying in the bed in front of her. "Kenzi," she whispered, suddenly remembering everything. "You shouldn't have let me sleep."

"You need to regain your strength. Besides, you were only asleep for about ten minutes. You overexerted yourself."

Bo nodded. She noticed Kenzi was missing her pants. "Um Lauren? What are you doing?" She quirked an eyebrow at her.

Lauren smiled, "I need to change her out of these clothes."

Bo stood up, "I'll help." She pulled the glove off of the hand she was still holding onto. Lauren used the scissors to finish cutting Kenzi's shirts. She walked to a corner of the room to retrieve a hospital gown from the cabinet and a few blankets. Bo slid the rest of the material out from under the small girl's body, leaving Kenzi just in her bra and underwear. Her brown eyes noticed some discoloration on her friend's arm. She turned the limb over in her hands to get a better look. Bo gasped, carefully running her fingers over the damaged skin. "What the hell?" Dark purple and black blotches marred her arm, the areas around it turning orange. This was the second injury today Kenzi sustained that Bo hadn't known about. "Lauren, what happened to Kenzi's arm?"

The doctor walked back with her arms full, "What are you talking about?" She put the pile down on the counter. She stepped forward, examining the wound. Her face twisted in confusion. "It looks like a chemical burn of some sort. It appears some kind of acid started eating through her skin."

"_Eating_ her skin?" Bo looked back at her sleeping friend. "Will it spread?"

Lauren picked up a small instrument, scraping a bit of the burnt skin off. "I'll analyze this sample, hopefully there is some residual material from whatever did this to her. The sooner we find out what it is, the sooner we can fix it." She left for a moment, handing the sample off to her nurse, before returning again. She hesitated, knowing what Bo's reaction would be to her theory. "Bo, I don't think this happened during the battle with the Garuda."

"What do you mean," she questioned. When else could it have happened? Bo was with her the entire time between the fight and now.

"If this had happened during the battle, then the acidic substance would have eaten through her shirts as well in order to get to her skin. The sleeves of her shirts are not damaged at all, except for the blood stains. Her gloves are okay too. With this evidence, I believe this occurred before we left to go after the Garuda."

Bo bit her lip, digesting the information. "So what you're saying is that she got hurt and didn't tell me?" How could Kenzi hide something like this from her?

"That's what it seems like. I would talk to her about it before jumping to conclusions Bo. Maybe she had a good reason." Lauren spoke from experience. Sometimes secrets needed to be kept, such as the one Lauren had kept regarding Nadia, although the doctor part of her couldn't fathom a good enough reason to keep a health problem secret. "The important thing is we know about it now and can do something about it. Until we figure out exactly what came in contact with her skin, I can put some ointment on it to calm the irritation." Bo nodded numbly, watching as Lauren spread the cream over the burns before wrapping Kenzi's arm. She ran a hand through her hair in frustration, overwhelmed by everything that had happened in the past twenty-four hours. She took a deep, claming breath. Lauren watched as the succubus tried to reign in her emotions. "Can you help me get the hospital gown on her?"

"Of course," Bo answered, temporarily pushing her thoughts aside. Lauren slid Kenzi's arms through the sleeves before tying it off in the back while Bo held the girl in a sitting position. The succubus gently laid her best friend back down to rest. Lauren placed extra blankets over her in order to keep her body heat in. Bo shifted her attention to a nurse who walked in with another IV stand, wheeling it over to the bed. Two bags full of blood hung from each side.

"Finally," Lauren breathed in relief. "I was beginning to think Dr. Suarez wasn't going to send those over." She inserted a needle into Kenzi's other hand, the red liquid making its way down the clear tube and into the patient's body.

"Why didn't you tell me you needed blood? I would have gladly given her mine," Bo asked, ready to pull up her sleeve incase the doctor needed more.

Lauren paused Bo's movements by resting her hands on the fae's arm. "I know you would have. That's not the problem. I have plenty of blood on reserve."

"Then why did we have to wait so long for this Dr. Suarez to deliver some?" Bo had seen how much blood Kenzi had lost when she reopened her wound, she didn't even want to guess at how much spilled out from the injury the first time. The younger woman was so pale, she obviously needed it. Kenzi flat lining earlier had already proved time was of the essence.

"Bo, this facility doesn't treat humans. Kenzi is the only human patient I've ever had in the lab. All of our blood reserves are from fae. Their DNA is in their blood. Even if I had Kenzi's blood type in the back, I would be injecting fae blood into her system. I don't know what the results would be if human DNA and fae DNA mixed. I couldn't risk potentially making Kenzi worse."

Bo nodded, deep in thought. "Is that the same with my blood?" Only hours ago, she had injected her own blood into her team in order to unite everyone. "If I had done the same to you and Kenzi, could it have killed you?" She thought back to all of the times she had been injured and bleeding near her two favourite humans.

Lauren shook her head. "No, your blood is different. Since you're a descendant of the Blood King, your blood holds unique properties. It has the power to enthrall both fae and humans, therefore your blood couldn't kill a person unless you ordered a thrall to kill his or herself," she caught herself before she continued with that train of thought; it was irrelevant at the moment. She remembered Aoife ordering one of her thralls to kill himself by becoming a suicide bomber within the Ash's compound during a meeting with the elders. Bo didn't need to be reminded of that right now. "Either way, mixing your blood with a human's wouldn't be fatal."

Lauren watched as Bo processed what she told her. "Good to know," the brunette said dryly, unsure whether it was better or not that her blood created thralls instead of killing people. She sighed, sitting back down in her chair next to Kenzi. Lauren put her hand on Bo's shoulder momentarily before exiting the room.


	4. Chapter 4

Author's Note: Apologies for the wait. I have a friend coming from out of the country to visit for a few weeks so I'm busy cleaning. Also, given this information, the next chapters to my fics may take a while. I'll try my best to update, but I can't make any gaurantees. Also, I passed all of my exams! So relieved! Okay, back to the story. Thank you as always to all of my reviewers. I really appreciate you taking the time to comment on my story. Enjoy!

Chapter 4

Kenzi groaned, slowly opening her eyes. It took her a moment to adjust to the blinding white lights beaming down from the ceiling. Groggily, she turned towards Bo. "Hey," she said, her voice hoarse.

Bo smiled, "Hey there."

"I had this weird dream you and the doc were taking my clothes off. I don't know how many times I've told you that I don't swing that way-" she paused, looking down at her current attire. "Oh Jesus, you did do it," her head fell back on the pillow.

Bo laughed, "relax Kenz, we didn't do anything except change your clothes. They were pretty nasty looking."

She sighed, "I bet. Damn, I loved that corset. At this rate, I'm going to run out of clothes to wear. Though I'm sure your succubus ass would love that wouldn't you?"

"Oh darn, you found me out," Bo replied sarcastically. "Well when you feel up to it, I owe you a shopping trip."

A spark of life lit Kenzi's eyes, "really? You mean it? Are you paying or are you succubusing all the employees?"

The unaligned fae gave Kenzi an incredulous look. "We're doing it the _legal_ way Kenzi."

The girl shrugged before she thought better of it, wincing at the pain that raced up her side. "Damn," she grumbled. "That hurts like a bitch."

Guilt washed over Bo. "Kenzi, I'm so sorry I dragged you into this fight. I never should have let you go, let alone let you out of my sight. I thought if you stayed with the others and away from the Garuda himself that you would be safer. That obviously didn't work," she ran her hand through her hair. "God, I'm such an idiot," she rambled.

Kenzi put her hand on Bo's arm, "whoa whoa, slow down there Speedy Gonzales. This is not your fault. And you are _not_ an idiot, you hear me? I never want to hear you say that again," she told her in a serious tone. She sighed, her voice returning to a softer volume. "I'm just glad you are okay."

"Me? You're the one laying in a hospital bed. I'm glad you're okay!" Bo placed her hand over Kenzi's.

Kenzi smirked, "well aren't we a pair."

Bo returned the smile, "that we are." Both of the women let the conversation drop there, knowing now was not the time to discuss the incident. Despite Kenzi's quips and comments, it was still obvious how weak she was.

Kenzi's eyes shifted to Bo's hand on hers, trailing down her own arm. "What's this?" She lifted her arm, examining the white bandage that encased it.

Bo pursed her lips, "I was hoping you could tell me."

The girl's confusion grew even more. "What are you talking about? I remember getting sliced and diced on my side, but I don't remember anything happening to my arm. Did I break it when I blacked out?" Her brows furrowed, moving her arm around a bit. "It doesn't feel broken," she mused to herself. "Itches like a frickin cast though."

Bo watched her best friend, studying her reaction. Bo knew her well enough to know when she was lying. Kenzi was honestly puzzled as to why gauze was wrapped around her arm. "You really don't know, do you?"

Kenzi rolled her eyes, "well if I knew, I wouldn't have asked you now would I?" she answered sarcastically.

"Kenz, your arm is covered in what Lauren described as acidic burns. We don't know exactly what it is yet or what caused it, but Lauren is running some tests to try to find out." Bo hesitated, unsure whether to bring this up yet or not. Against her better judgment, she continued, "she also said that this didn't happen during the battle with the Garuda. She said it happened before we even left to fight him."

"What? How could that be? I don't-" she paused mid-sentence, remembering the dark slime that spilled onto her arm at the Norn's house. Recognition settled in her eyes. This was what the Norn had meant by 'a gift has been given.' Some lousy gift. Kenzi wished there wasn't a strict no-return policy for it.

Bo noticed Kenzi falter in her words. "You do know," she stated, trying to keep the accusatory tone out of her voice.

Kenzi sighed, refusing to meet Bo's gaze. "Yes," she whispered, knowing it was no use lying.

"Kenzi-" Bo started.

"Bo-Bo, please. Not now," Kenzi cut her off, not wanting to get into this at the moment.

"But-"

"_Please_," Kenzi begged, her watery blue eyes making contact with chocolate ones.

Bo relented, her heart clenching at seeing Kenzi beg. "Okay."

"I promise I'll tell you Bo, really I will. I just can't right now," she rambled, knowing how upset Bo will get once the succubus knows the whole story. She can't handle the disappointment her reckless actions were sure to cause, not in her current state. The beeping on the monitor increased with Kenzi's now rapidly beating heart.

"Hey hey," Bo said softly, grabbing Kenzi's now trembling hand. "It's okay. I'm sorry I brought it up. I shouldn't have said anything." She got up from her chair, gently laying down next to Kenzi in the small bed, making sure to avoid the IV tubes. She carefully shifted the fragile girl into her arms, hugging her.

"I'm sorry," Kenzi sniffled, trying to control herself. She wasn't normally this emotional. Her body felt so tired and overwhelmed. She bit her tongue, refusing to cry.

"Shhh, it's okay. Don't apologise," she ran a hand down Kenzi's silky black hair. "You've had a really rough day, and as much as you don't want to admit it, you're seriously injured. You need to regain your strength."

Kenzi nodded against her. "I just need my best friend right now."

"Always," Bo responded. "You always have me." She kissed the top of Kenzi's head. Bo knew exactly what she meant. Kenzi didn't need questions or the third degree right now, she needed the support of her closet friend.

"Ditto," Kenzi whispered back. They had proven tonight just how true that was. Bo heard the beeps on the monitor slow back to normal. She looked down, noticing Kenzi had drifted back off to sleep. Just that conversation alone must have taken a lot out of her. She knew Kenzi never wanted to think of herself as weak, and to be honest, neither did Bo. But right now, in this moment, Bo couldn't avoid the painful truth.

Lauren stepped outside the doors, shutting them behind her. Dyson, Hale and Trick immediately stood up, anxiously awaiting any news about their human friend. She looked at them, each fae giving her his undivided attention. A smile spread across her face. They instantly relaxed. "She's going to be okay," Lauren told them. Sighs of relief sounded throughout the group.

"Thank god," Trick said as Dyson and Hale hugged each other.

A serious look returned to Dyson's face, "what happened earlier?"

"What?" Lauren questioned at first, wondering what he was referring to it. She realized he must know about how close they came to losing Kenzi. But how? "Oh right, wolf hearing."

Dyson nodded. "I could hear the machines from out here." Trick and Hale looked at the shifter. "I know Kenzi flat lined earlier." The men beside him stared in shock, looking to Lauren for answers.

"It's true. While I was stitching the wound, Kenzi's heart stopped. She didn't respond to the use of the defibrillator, but Bo was able to bring her back with a combination of CPR and giving Kenzi some of her chi. Bo kept her alive while I worked. She's stable now. She's in and out of consciousness. It will take her human body a while to heal, but she will survive," she explained, specifically leaving out the part about Kenzi's arm. If Bo didn't know about it, then she figured the others didn't know either. There was a reason Kenzi had kept the injury a secret, and Lauren was not going to betray her trust. The two humans weren't exactly the best of friends, but they respected each other. Lauren was not going to jeopardize that. Besides, the two people who needed to know, Bo and a doctor, already knew.

"Can we see her?" Hale asked.

"Yes. You can all see her. But she really needs her rest, so don't keep her awake for too long if she wakes up. Also, Bo gave Kenzi a lot of her chi in order to keep her alive, so both of them are weak," she warned. Lauren held the door open for everyone to walk through.

Dyson laid a hand on Lauren's shoulder as he passed. "Thank you," he said sincerely.

Lauren stared at him, wondering if he had an ulterior motive. "I didn't do it for you," she said.

He smirked, "I know. But still, you saved her. Thank you." With that, he walked inside. Lauren stared after him, surprised at the appreciation he showed. Her own smile formed, content with the temporary truce that had unknowingly formed between them during this time of crisis.

As they approached the sectioned off area, Lauren stepped in front to draw back the curtain. Bo and Kenzi were curled up together on the small hospital bed, both fast asleep. Bo's arm was wrapped protectively around the younger woman's waist. They all looked at each other. Tricked gestured towards the door. They silently walked back out. Once outside the door, Trick spoke. "We'll wait out here until they wake up. Let's give them some privacy for now. They've both been through a lot."

"I think that's a good idea," Lauren agreed. "I need to go back in and monitor Kenzi as well as run a few more tests."

"More tests? I thought you said she was going to be fine," Hale questioned.

"Don't worry, it's just precautionary," Lauren assured him. "I'll let you guys know when they wake up."


	5. Chapter 5

Author's note: So sorry for the lack of updates lately. I had a friend visiting from out of the country, then went to Comic Con, then went to visit family across the country. I brought my fics with me to work on while I was away, but go figure, my laptop died :( There's another thing I need to get fixed. But don't worry, I'm not abandoning my stories. I'm still updating this and Tortura. This chapter gave me some trouble, I didn't like how it turned out, so I kept messing with it. It's still not perfect, but if I keep overanalyzing everything you guys won't get an update for another month lol. So here it is (and it's a longer chapter too)! Thank you to everyone who continues to read & leave reviews. They keep me motivated to keep writing. Enjoy!

CHAPTER 5

Kenzi awoke with a start. Someone was being extra noisy nearby. "Bo?" she asked. Her eyes cracked open, noticing the succubus was not only missing from the bed, but she was missing from the room entirely. She saw a nurse standing nearby. Her gaze rose to his face. She froze, fear gripping her heart. "You!" She tried to lift herself up, but her limbs gave out at the searing pain that shot through her. She groaned, laying back on the bed, completely defenseless and alone.

The man flicked the top of a syringe filled with a yellow liquid. "Yes, me. I'm glad you remember me, because I definitely remember you," he glared. "I remember how last time I was ordered by Dr. Lewis to treat you, a human, and you threatened me with a poisoned needle containing your infected blood. I never wanted to treat you, I never should have had to! Your kind means nothing to us. I would have preferred to watch you rot. You would have deserved it for how you humiliated me. No human gets the best of me and lives. This time, there is no benefit to the fae from helping you, no basilisk poison cure to be found. There's no point in keeping you alive." He lifted the syringe in front of her face, "I figured I'd go for poetic justice. You threatened me with a poisoned needle, and I kill you with one." He moved to insert the needle into Kenzi's IV tube.

Kenzi's eyes grew wide. "B-" she started to scream Bo's name, only to be stopped short by a rough hand clamping down over her mouth. Her shouts were muffled. She tried to pry his hand off of her, but his fae strength was superior to her own.

"Ah-ah," he warned. "Can't have that now can we?" Kenzi continued to struggle against him. Spying the syringe, she smacked it out of his hand. The glass container shattered on the floor, the liquid making a hissing sound as it sizzled on the tiles. A shiver ran through her as she realized the full extent of what this man had intended on injecting her with and what it would have done to her. "Damn it!" he cursed. "Oh well, there's more than one way to kill a human." He reached over, grabbing a scalpel from the tray holding a variety of medical instruments. "Now the only question is whether to cut your throat," he held the object near her neck, before moving it down lower, "or if I should just reopen your wound. Either way should be painful."

Kenzi's eyes followed his movements. She shifted away from his touch, only to yanked back into place roughly. She screamed in pain against his hand. Tears pricked the corners of her eyes. With no escape, she was at his mercy.

After silently easing out of the bed, Bo had left to use the bathroom. She splashed cool water onto her face, wiping away the day's events. She washed her hands and arms, scrubbing Kenzi's blood off of them. She needed to be rid of the constant reminder of what had happened to her friend. Kenzi was going to be okay, and that's all that mattered. She dried herself off, exiting the lab through the front doors.

Dyson was the first to notice Bo's entrance. "Bo!" he jumped up. He looked her over, "Lauren told us what happened. Are you okay?" He lowered his voice, asking more subtly, "do you need to feed?"

Bo smiled at him, "no I'm good thanks. Just a little tired. I feel a lot better after getting some rest."

"How's she doing?" Hale asked.

"Better. She's making her usual snide remarks, but it's Kenzi. She's acting like nothing is wrong when there is," she smiled sadly.

They all remained silent for a moment, knowing how true that was. Maybe it was her time on the streets, or maybe it was her time spent with her stepfather, but either way, Kenzi had learned to never show weakness. It was a good trait to have in the fae world, but it saddened the group to know that such a caring person had grown up in a place where she felt that she could never let her guard down. It was understandable why she was so fiercely loyal to Bo, and why it took her a while to warm up to the others. Learning to trust someone completely after having been hurt so many times by those closest to her taught the girl to put up walls around her heart. In her world, it wasn't safe to trust anyone but herself. Sadly, her past and the fae world seemed to have a lot in common.

"I wish we could do more to help her," Trick said, his voice downtrodden.

Dyson turned away from the group, his eyes focused on the closed doors of the medical lab.

"What it is?" Bo asked concerned.

Dyson shushed her, holding up his hand. His ears picked up the erratically fast beeping of the heart monitor coming from beyond the door. His heart sank when the noise abruptly stopped altogether. Bo noticed his eyes turn yellow before he slammed open the doors, running towards Kenzi's bed and whipping back the curtain so fast that it tore off its hinges. A man loomed over the patient, one hand clamped down over her mouth while the other held a sharp instrument to her throat. The wires of the heart monitor dangled uselessly from the machine. One of Kenzi's IV had been ripped from her limb. "Get away from her," Dyson growled dangerously.

"You defend her?!" the nurse accused. "After what I told you she did, you chose her side?" He stared in disbelief at how a fae could choose the life of a human over one of their own.

"Kenzi!" Bo yelled, her eyes locking onto her best friend's. She took a hesitant step forward, her arms up in a peaceful gesture. "Just drop your weapon and walk away."

"Stay back!" he shouted, pressing the metal into Kenzi's neck. A small rivulet of blood ran down.

Bo halted her movements. "Look. Whatever she did to you, I'm sure we can resolve this without violence. You're a nurse; you save lives, you don't take them."

"Nothing but her life will appease me," he narrowed his eyes. He lifted his hand from her mouth, no longer caring if she was quiet or not since the calvary had already arrived. He grabbed Kenzi by her hair, yanking her head back to better expose her throat. She bit her tongue to keep from crying out, but she couldn't hold back the moan that escaped. "This human made a fool out of me in the Ash's compound! No one takes me seriously anymore. She ruined my reputation and my credibility. I save _fae_ lives; the life of a human is insignificant. The world will be a better place with her gone."

"But you work for Dr. Lewis, and she's a human," Hale pointed out.

"No, I work for the Ash and take orders from him. He told me to assist the human doctor and that's what I do, no more no less. She's here because she is useful. This one on the other hand," he looked back at Kenzi, "has given me and the other fae nothing but grief."

"You're just jealous," Kenzi gritted her teeth. "Because while you and all the other fae were hiding like cowards with your tails between your legs in your bomb shelters, I, a mere human, was fighting the Garuda and his minions. I was saving _your_ ass. You wouldn't be here right now if it wasn't for me." He yanked her head back further.

"It's true," Trick spoke up, hoping to draw attention off of Kenzi. He knew her words would have angered the nurse.

"What do you know old man?"

"I know and have a seen a lot more in my long years than a young fae such as yourself. That human stood alongside us, even though she didn't have to, even though she doesn't have any powers. She refused to run and hide, no matter how many chances we offered her, instead risking her life to save the fae. So don't stand there and tell us she has done nothing for our kind," Trick glowered.

"Without her, I wouldn't be here right now," Bo said cryptically. That was true in a number of ways, but namely tonight; if Kenzi hadn't done the ritual, Bo literally wouldn't be standing right here. She would be out wreaking havoc on the world instead.

Lauren rounded the corner, stopping cold when she saw the stand-off occurring before her. She stayed out of sight, quietly sneaking up behind her co-worker. The man's sensitive hearing picked up her soft footfalls. He turned towards the noise, giving Hale the opening he needed to use his whistle. The man froze, paralyzed. Dyson quickly pried the scalpel from his hand before shoving him up against the wall. He slapped a pair of handcuffs onto the nurse, making sure they were extra tight. The two cops led their prisoner out of the lab.

Bo ran over to Kenzi, pulling her into her arms. Lauren checked the girl's neck, pleased that the cut was only superficial. Kenzi drew in a shaky breath before rounding on the doctor, "what the hell was he doing still working here?!"

Lauren was caught off guard by the other human's question. "I swear I didn't know Kenzi or else I would have informed the Ash-"

Kenzi cut her off, "like he would have done anything anyways. He didn't give a shit about humans." She withdrew from the others, wrapping her arms around herself, trying to stop the tremors that ran up and down her body. She turned towards her best friend. "Bo I want to go home."

"Kenzi," Bo started softly, knowing the girl was still visibly shaken from her ordeal. "I don't think that's a good idea yet. Only two hours ago you were practically lifeless."

"You're not well enough," Lauren added. "You need more time to heal in a sterile environment."

"I don't care," Kenzi said, her voice frantic. Between her hate of hospitals and her run-in with a fae who she never hoped to see again, she was beginning to panic. "I can't stay here. I won't."

"Kenzi please," Bo tried to reason. "Just a few more days-"

"_Days_?! Oh hell no." Kenzi swung her legs over the edge of the bed, leaning on her elbow. She bit her tongue against the pain. The adrenaline coursing through her body gave her temporary strength. "I'll leave on my own if I have to, you can't keep me here!" Knowing it was not a good idea, she got up, putting her full weight onto her legs. She had to get out of here. She couldn't take another minute in this asylum hell hole. The instant her feet touched the tiled floor, pain tore through her. Her knees gave out, her body crumpling to the ground.

"Kenzi!" Bo yelled, catching the girl on the way down. She held her close in her arms. "What were you thinking?"

Sobs wracked the young woman's body. "Please," she whispered. "I can't stay here, I can't." The aggression left her voice, only fear remained.

Bo looked down at her, seeing how scared she was. She rocked back and forth, rubbing soothing circles on her back. "Let me see what I can do okay?" She felt Kenzi nod against her. "Now come on, we have to get you back into bed for now." She picked Kenzi up bridal style, the girl groaning from the pain. She gently laid her back down. "I'm sorry."

"It's okay," she grabbed Bo's wrist as the succubus turned away. "Just don't leave, okay?"

Bo laid her hand over Kenzi's. "I won't. I'm just going over to that corner to talk with the others and see what we can do." Bo and Trick walked away, leaving Lauren alone to tend to Kenzi before having their chat.

Lauren reinserted the IV into Kenzi's arm before hooking the heart monitor back up to her. She put an ointment on the small cut on her patient's neck. "I'm honestly so sorry Kenzi."

Kenzi took in a shuddering breath, trying to calm herself. "It's not your fault doc. I'm sorry I yelled at you."

"There's no need for you to apologise. I understand." With that, she joined the others in the corner. Hale and Dyson had already returned. "I'm sorry Bo, I didn't know he and Kenzi had a past altercation or I never would have let him near her."

"No, that's my fault," Dyson answered before Bo had the chance to. "I told him not to tell anyone what had happened. When Kenzi was here after eating the poisoned 'foot soup,' she put an infected needle to his throat in order to escape. I didn't want the Ash to find out. He would have had his men track her down and kill her to prevent the infection from spreading. I also told him not to tell you both because you were in the middle of trying to get the antidote for her. If you found out she was missing, it would have jeopardized the mission." He gave Bo a knowing look.

"You did the right thing." Bo honestly didn't know what she would have done if she had found out that Kenzi had run off at that time. She either would have ditched the mission in search of her friend, or rushed the mission which could have potentially botched the entire thing. "I just wish you had told us eventually."

"I know, I should have," he responded. "I'm sorry."

"What's done is done. There's no sense in blaming ourselves for this. Kenzi is okay and that's the important thing," Trick said.

"Yeah but now she looks paranoid," Hale observed.

Bo frowned, watching her best friend keep a vigilant eye out for anything suspicious in the lab. "She's never going to be able to relax now. She hates regular human hospitals, let alone one run by the fae," she looked to Lauren, "no offense."

"None taken. Of all people, I understand. She's right to be cautious. She has no protection here, besides us. There is no Ash to tell everyone what to do. Fae are still aggressive from the Gaurda's lingering effects. It will take a few days for everything to return to some semblance of normal." Lauren ran a hand through her hair.

Bo sighed, "She's going to try to make a run for it again. She's calmed down, but she is still freaking out on the inside. She's going to end up hurting herself even more trying to escape. I know I'm not going to get the answer I want," Bo hesitated, "but when can I take her home?"

"She should stay here for at least a week. She needs someone to watch her 24/7 for any signs of complications. I need to monitor her pain and adjust her medicines accordingly. She needs to be in a sterile environment to reduce the risk of infection," Lauren pursed her lips. "That being said, I think she should go home in a few hours."

"What?" Bo asked, surprised by Lauren's last statement. "But you just said-"

"I know," Lauren interrupted her. "But the Ash's Compound is not safe right now. You are unaligned, and without the Ash's consent to treat Kenzi, she is unprotected. Any fae could come in here and do exactly what that nurse did to her, and they would be justified in their actions. She's an injured human surrounded by hungry fae who just lived through their version of the apocalypse. I want Kenzi to stay here for a few more hours, just long enough to finish giving her the rest of her blood transfusion. Then I can send her home with pain medicines and an antibiotic to fight off any infections she may encounter. I'll drop by from time to time to check on her and to change the dressings on her wounds." She took a deep breath, "look, I really don't want to do this. It goes against everything my medical training taught me, but the bad consequences of her staying here outweigh the good. She needs her rest to regain her strength, and you know as well as I do that she won't be getting any more sleep here unless I give her something to make her sleep. And if I do that, she's a sitting duck if anyone else tries to attack her."

Bo reached for Lauren, hugging her. "Thank you."

Lauren smiled, "of course."

"I'll drive you and Kenzi back to the clubhouse when you're both ready," Dyson offered. I'm the only one with a car here since we all left directly from the Dal to face the Garuda."

"Lauren and I can go pick up your car from the Dal and drop it off at your house," Hale looked to Lauren, seeing her nod in agreement of his plan. "I rode with Dyson to the Dal, so my car is still parked out back."

"And I'll hitch a ride back to my pub with you two?" Trick asked.

"Of course."

"Thank you guys, I really appreciate everything," she looked at them all. "I'm going to go let Kenzi know what's going on."

"Bo," Trick grabbed her arm. "Keep a watchful eye over Kenzi." Bo gave him a look like he was stating the obvious. "I know you will, but you must be extra vigilant. Just because the Garuda is gone doesn't mean we're all suddenly safe, least of all you and Kenzi. You may have saved the fae, but you are still unaligned and your past…discrepancies," he said, for lack of a better word, "are not erased because of it."

"I understand."

"No, you don't. More fae may leave you alone because you saved their lives, but more fae will be after Kenzi because she helped to save them."

Bo's brows furrowed, "what? Why?" She figured Kenzi helping to save the fae would finally earn her some credibility in the fae world. She thought it was too much to hope for Kenzi being put on the fae's 'do not eat' list. In any case, she expected Kenzi's situation to get better, not worse.

"Kenzi's place in the fae world is a very delicate matter. She is claimed, but by someone who is unaligned so therefore that offers her little protection. She is also not like a normal claimed human. Kenzi can do whatever she wants, whenever she wants. Many fae do not like that liberal way of thinking. To them, humans are meant to be controlled."

Bo already knew everything Trick said. She was growing impatient. If Kenzi's life was in danger, she needed to know and now. "Where are you going with this?"

Trick shifted his weight to his other foot. "Yes, Kenzi helped to save the fae, but the majority of the fae will not like that. The fact that a human, an inferior being, fought the enemy of the fae while they all hid makes them look bad. They will not allow any human to challenge their place in the world, and right now, Kenzi is deemed as a threat to their way of life."

Bo put her head in her hand, moving to rub her temples to try the ease the migraine that was beginning to throb. "Like we don't have enough problems." She looked at Kenzi, who was currently fidgeting with her finger nails. "Thanks for the warning. You know I won't let anyone touch her."

Trick smiled, "I know, I just needed you to be aware of how serious the situation is."

"Thank you," she told him earnestly.

Bo approached Kenzi's bed, the girl eager to know what was going on. "So, did you ask?"

"Of course I did, I told you I would. Lauren said you can go home," a grin lit the human's face, "in a few hours." Kenzi opened her mouth to protest but Bo held up a finger. "I know, but you have to stay here for a while longer. Technically, you should be here for another week, but Lauren thinks it would be best with the current fae situation going on around us if you were to heal at home. First, we have to wait until the rest of the blood in that bag," she pointed to the IV stand, "empties."

Kenzi immediately checked the contents of the bag, groaning when it was only half empty. "Ugh, this thing takes forever." She suddenly got an evil look in her eyes, "I can make it empty real fast," she muttered, imagining diving the scalpel into the bag and ripping it open. Bo only said the bag needed to be empty, not where the blood had to end up.

"Kenzi," Bo warned her.

"Fine," Kenzi rolled her eyes.

Bo's eyes softened, "how are you doing otherwise?"

"Besides another fae trying to stab me? Just peachy," she scoffed. She bit the inside of her cheek as her side twinged.

Bo noticed the sudden change in friend, no matter how hard she tried to hide it. "You're in pain, aren't you?"

"No, I'm fine," she tried to reassure her friend, but her voice betrayed her.

"Kenz," Bo said with empathy. "You aggravated your injury trying to get up."

"Yeah, I screwed up again, so what of it?" she said a bit harsher than she meant to. She was tired of being the one who always messed up. She felt she had more to prove than the others since she was human. Dyson's words still echoed in her mind from her Baba Yaga invoking incident, 'you're so bloody human!' He said it as if it were an insult, as if her being human automatically meant she was also stupid. Even though she knew Dyson liked her, it was still hard to hear what he thought of humans as a whole.

Bo frowned. "That's not what I meant. I'm just worried about you."

"I panicked," Kenzi whispered, not liking to admit her faults. "I panicked and I did something stupid, _again_," she emphasized, hinting at how she acquired the injury to her arm.

"It wasn't stupid, it's a normal reaction."

Kenzi half smiled, "we're anything but normal."

Bo intertwined their fingers, "and you're anything but stupid," she reassured her.


	6. Chapter 6

Author's Note: Thank you for all of the reviews, including the "guest" reviews from readers who don't have accounts on this website. I really apprecite you all taking the time to tell me what you think about my fic. I hope you guys continue to keep reviewing. It gives me the encouragement and motivation to keep writing.

CHAPTER 6

Bo pulled the blankets up over Kenzi's body, gently tucking her in. "Thank you," Kenzi told her. Bo nodded. "No, not for this. Well thank you for this too," she rambled, "but I meant thank you for not judging me."

Bo furrowed her eyebrows, sitting down on the edge of Kenzi's bed. "Why would I judge you?"

Kenzi pursed her lips. "For what happened at the lab, me overreacting. I panicked and acted on instinct instead of thinking it through. I know it wasn't the smartest thing I've done and I know I could have hurt myself, but you didn't judge me for what I did. You understood, told me it was going to be okay, helped me. You always do. So thank you."

Bo smiled down at her, "of course. I would never judge you."

"I know," Kenzi responded, the corner's of her lips turning up. Even when they first met, Bo didn't think any less of Kenzi when she found out about her criminal activities. In turn, Kenzi was the first person Bo had met who didn't make any assumptions about her despite knowing who she was and what she could do. That was part of what made them so close; they accept each other for who they are, no questions asked.

"Now get some rest," Bo leaned over, kissing the girl's forehead.

"Mmmhmm," Kenzi agreed, quickly losing the battle to stay awake. Now that she was home, she felt safe and relaxed. The tension eased out of her body. Within a minute, she was fast asleep.

Bo stayed for a moment, watching the steady rise and fall of Kenzi's chest as she breathed, proof that she was alive. Her mind still had difficulty wrapping around how close she had come to losing her best friend. She didn't want to think about that now; all that mattered was that Kenzi was safe and sound in her own bed. She tiptoed out the door, closing it quietly behind her. Dyson waited downstairs. He turned, hearing her approaching. "Thank you for your help," she told the shifter.

"Of course," he replied. "If you or Kenzi need anything, don't hesitate to call me."

"I appreciate it, we both do."

"I would stick around longer, but apparently it almost being the end of the fae world doesn't excuse me from my human world job," he smirked.

Bo nodded, "I understand." The humans had kept going about their business as usual, not knowing how close to death everyone had come. She crossed the small distance to hug him. "I'm glad I can still count on you. You've proven that, despite what the Norn took from you, from us. You're a good man Dyson," she patted her hand over his heart, "don't forget that."

Dyson looked down at her, wanting to tell her about the Norn, about what Kenzi did, that he had his love back. His eyes shifted to the staircase before returning to Bo. Now was not the time. Bo had enough on her mind and the last thing he needed to do was tell an already worried succubus that her best friend attacked one of the most powerful fae with a chainsaw. That wouldn't end well. "Bo, I want to be there for you, and I promise you from now on I will be. I know this year hasn't been easy, and I haven't been the man I used to be. I know it's been hard on you, and on Kenzi," his mind automatically thinking back to the time Kenzi invoked Baba Yaga to get revenge on him. Until that moment, he hadn't realized how much his sacrifice had effected the others. He was so caught up in his own misery that he failed to see it. "I want to be that man again Bo, I _need_ to be."

"You will," Bo reassured him.

"After I lost my ability to love, I realized just what that entailed. Without being able to love anything, I didn't care about anything or anyone. I became obsessed with trying to feel something again. It felt like I was just wandering around without a purpose, an empty shell with no reason to live. I needed a reason. My sense of right and wrong became muddled, blending together. I couldn't take it anymore, and I couldn't take knowing I was inadvertently hurting my friends, hurting you. So I left to find the Wolf Spirit, to find answers. Little did I know the answers I was searching for were right in front of me the entire time," he said a bit cryptically, hinting at what Kenzi had done for him. He smiled at Bo's confusion, "I'll tell you all in time, I swear. For now, just know that I'm here for you, and I'm not going anywhere."

Bo looked flabbergasted, "I don't know what to say Dyson, besides thank you. Just knowing that you are making an effort makes me happy." She frowned, "I thought we had lost you there for a while."

He shook his head, "never. I may become lost at times, but I will always find my way home."

Bo searched his eyes, wanting so badly to believe him but also afraid of being hurt again. As much as she wanted to give him encouragement, she couldn't ignore what her heart and mind were telling her. "Dyson, I know I can count on you when it's a life and death situation, but I'm not so sure I can all of the other times. I know you sacrificed yourself to the Norn for me, and for that I find it difficult to be mad at you. But since then, you've been an ass," she stated bluntly. "You've done so much damage this past year, whether intentional or not. That can't be repaired over night or with a few well spoken words. You not only broke my heart, but you broke my trust and faith in you. I want to trust you, but I can't let you get close enough to hurt me unless I can be sure it won't happen again. And I won't let you put Kenzi through that again either," she added, the protective big sister in her coming out. "We've both been through enough shit in our lives, we don't need this too."

Dyson ran his hand through his hair, his voice sad and desperate, "just tell me what I have to do. How can I make it up to you?"

"Prove to me that you can be trusted again. Prove to me that I can rely on you, that I don't have to be afraid of you running off without warning or turning your back on us. It will take time, but if you think I'm worth the effort, then do this for me. Despite everything that has happened, I do still care about you."

Dyson picked up on her wording, afraid to ask the question on his mind. "I know you care, but will you ever be able to love me again?"

Bo sighed, shaking her head, "I don't know Dyson, I really don't know." She was disappointed in her own answer, but decided she needed to speak the truth. She wasn't going to sugar coat things for him or lead him to believe in something that may never be. "You hurt me," she put her hand over her own heart. "Not physically, but emotionally. And that is a wound that is hard to repair. You will always be my friend, but asking me this right here and now, I'm not sure if I should ever let you that close to my heart again." Her eyes became glossy, "I know you are hurting, and I can't imagine what that must be like for you. But I was hurting too, still am. I am hurting and I have done nothing wrong except love you."

"Bo, loving me isn't wrong," he tried to correct her.

"Something that causes that much pain feels wrong. I don't want it to be wrong. I was so happy when I was with you Dyson, I felt like I could actually love someone without getting hurt," a tear leaked out. "I accidentally killed my past lovers, but with you, it didn't happen. I felt safe. I felt like nothing could touch me, that you would protect me. And yes, you protected me physically, but you cut me so much deeper than any knife ever could. I don't know if I can ever put myself in that situation again. If I don't know for sure that you won't hurt me, then I'm sorry, but I can't be with you. I can't do that to myself again, I won't."

"I'm so sorry," he whispered.

Bo placed a hand on his arm. "Dyson, I want you to the be the man I fell in love with. Don't give up hope. First, prove to me that you can be that man once more and then we'll see where we go from there. I don't know what the future holds, but I do know that you are capable of more than this."

"I will. I'll do whatever it takes," he vowed, determined. "Thank you for giving me a second chance."

She nodded. "Now start by not getting fired from your job detective," she said, trying to lighten the mood.

Dyson smiled, "yes ma'am." He walked out the door, Bo closing it behind him. She leaned up against the wooden door, letting out a big breath. That was not an easy discussion to have, but she knew it had to be done. She prayed Dyson could live up to his words. She didn't know if it was even possible without first getting his love back. Only time would tell.


	7. Chapter 7

Author's note: Okay, so after seeing your guys' reactions and lack of reviews (the lowest I've received on either story) on the last chapter, I'm realising I should have maybe added a little note before it. I take it the lack of reviews is because the last chapter consisted mainly of Dyson & Bo's talk, and I know most readers & writers on this site are Bo/Lauren fans. Let me make it clear that I am not endorsing either relationship in this story, I am merely treating both relationships like the show does and addressing them both. I discuss the feelings they each have for the other, but in my story, neither pairing is together at the moment. This story is focused on Bo and Kenzi and their friendship. I don't want to overshadow that by "picking sides" in the love triangle. You may read as far into my writing as you like and pretend they're together if you wish, I don't mind different interpretations, but know that when I am writing this, I am only writing what needs to be written. This fic is about Kenzi's injuries she sustained, including the Norn one she received. In order to discuss that, Dyson has to be involved and Bo has to find out sooner or later about what Kenzi did for him and the consequences of her actions. Last chapter was supposed to set it up to give Dyson a perfect opportunity to tell Bo he had his love back, but instead he didn't, complicating things for when she does find out. I also used last chapter as a way of explaining why he was such a jerk last season in the series and to show that he is seeking redemption. If you read the last chapter, you'll notice that Bo was encouraging him to be the man he used to be (they're still friends after all and used to have a deeper connection), but she's hesitant on trusting him like she used to. These are issues that were sure to arise with the fallout.

My explanantion was a bit longer than need be, but I wanted to make sure everyone understood me on this matter. If you would like a further explanation, feel free to PM me. Also, a big thank you to those of you who did review my last chapter. I really appreciate it. Anyways, back to this chapter! I hope you all enjoy it, and as always, please leave me a review.

Chapter 7

There was a knock at the door which quickly turned into pounding. Bo rushed to it, opening it as fast as possible so the loud noise would stop. The last thing she needed was for it to wake Kenzi. Bo was shocked to see who was standing across from her. "Vex! What the hell are you doing here?!" she whispered harshly.

"What? I can't stop in to see how my favourite succubus is doing?" He questioned innocently.

"As you can see," she held her arms out to her side, "I'm fine." She moved to close the door, but Vex put his foot in the way.

He pushed it back open, "Yeah well, I'm not here to see you." He brushed past her.

Bo's eyes widened at his implication, backtracking to put herself in between him and the rest of her house. He stood in the walkway, staring her down. "You are not going anywhere _near_ Kenzi," she demanded in a deadly voice.

He rolled his eyes, "don't get your panties in a bunch love. I'm not going to hurt her." He tried to step past her again, but she blocked his path.

"I mean it Vex! I'm not under any false impressions that you hold any loyalties to me or my friends now that the war is over. I know what you think of humans," she spat.

"You're right, I'm not fond of the little pests. Well except to use as play toys," he added, much to Bo's disgust. He leaned closer to the succubus, "but I wouldn't do that to _her_."

Bo's eyebrows furrowed, confusion evident in her face. "What? Why?"

Vex shrugged. "That girl's got balls. She stood with us in a battle most fae ran away from, even though she was easy pickings as a human."

Bo never expected to hear Vex give anything even remotely resembling a compliment to a human. "So, what? You respect her now or something?"

He grimaced, "Well when you put it like that it sounds awful. Let's just say, I no longer think of her as your pet. After what she did and went through, she deserves a bit more than that."

Before Bo could respond, she heard a voice she wasn't expecting. "Vex?" Kenzi asked weakly, leaning against the frame of the doorway as she stepped off the last stair. Her hand was holding her side.

Vex motioned to the girl with his hand, "see? That's all I wanted." He turned to leave. "Oh and one more thing," he said, shoving a bottle of vodka into her hands, "a congratulations and get well gift all wrapped up into one." He looked over to Kenzi, "teach this one some manners eh?" Vex let himself out, closing the door behind him.

"Me teach you manners? Hah, does he realise who he is talking to?"

Bo let out a sigh of relief before walking over to Kenzi. "You shouldn't be out of bed."

"Psshhtt, I'm fine _mom_." Kenzi waved her hand at Bo, wincing as she did so. Bo gave her a pointed look. Kenzi rolled her eyes. "I heard the commotion and came down to see what was going on."

"Nothing I couldn't handle," she replied. "Come on, let's get you back to bed," Bo said, sliding her arm underneath Kenzi's to help her.

"Well actually I wanted a glass of water."

"I can get that for you after we get you upstairs. Consider me your live-in brownie."

Kenzi smirked, but Bo noticed her hesitation. "Bo, I'm going a bit stir crazy in my room. There's only so many times I can read books before I go cross-eyed. And I already counted how many boards are covering each window, how many holes are in the walls, and how many nasty looking stains there are on the ceiling! I've run out of things to stare at!"

Bo grinned, "okay okay, I get it. Well since you're already down here, why don't you sit on the couch and watch TV for a bit. Maybe kill some robot hookers."

A smile lit Kenzi's face, "ah yes thank you!" She squeezed Bo's shoulder in appreciation. "Otherwise ya know, I could always start counting the stains in your room, and I ain't talking about the ones on the ceiling," she teased. "Although, if they did reach the ceiling, that's some amazing feat."

Bo's eyes grew wide, "hey!" If Kenzi wasn't injured, she would have playfully bopped her upside the head for that one.

Bo eased her onto the couch. Kenzi sighed, sinking into the cushions. The tension the pain caused slowly left her body. She closed her eyes for a moment before looking up at Bo's worried expression. She still wasn't used to having people fuss over her or even care if she got hurt. Hell, most of the time it was her own family, namely her stepfather, who hurt her. "Maybe I could use some of those pain killers Lauren gave me."

"Sure thing," Bo ran upstairs to get them, coming back down with two pills in her hand. She gave them to Kenzi then walked into the kitchen to get a water bottle. She figured it would be better to have the resealable bottle sitting right next to Kenzi on the couch so she didn't have to keep leaning for the table to pick up a glass. The last thing they needed was for the wound to open a third time.

"Thank you," Kenzi accepted the drink, tipping her head back to down the medicine. "Ah, drugs. Such a wonderful invention." She looked at the abandoned bottle of vodka sitting on the table in front of her. "Speaking of wonderful inventions…"

"No no no! No alcohol for you missy," Bo grabbed the bottle. "Not with pain pills. You want to end up back in the lab?!"

"Oh hell no! The only way you could get me back in that place is if I was unconscious and had no say-so over the matter again," she paused, thinking over what she just said, "and this is _not_ me telling you to knock my ass out!"

Bo rolled her eyes, "relax Kenz. Besides, I have better methods," she licked her lips. Kenzi frowned, over exaggerating a barfing motion. Bo chuckled.

Kenzi's eyes shifted back to the vodka. "So, what did Vex want? To do shots?"

Bo's face scrunched up, "I'm still trying to figure that one out myself." She sat down next to her friend.

"Well what did he say?"

"He said that he came to check on you."

Kenzi drew back, "what? Why?"

"That's what I asked him. He didn't go so far as to say that he respected you for fighting with us, but I think in Vex's own way, that's exactly what he meant."

"Interesting…" Kenzi drawled. "Well maybe it'll take me off his menu at least. It'd be nice to have a dark fae on our side who didn't try to have the Morrigan talent-suck my boyfr-" she stopped short, the word naturally wanting to come out when she thought of Nate. Nate. This was the first time she had really stopped to think about him since she had spent the night in Bo's bed crying. With the approaching war, she hadn't had time to process what had happened. Tears automatically sprung to her eyes, thinking of everything she had had and everything she had lost. She stared at her best friend, tight lipped, trying to hold back all of the emotions that were wanting to break free.

"Oh Kenzi," Bo said sympathetically, leaning over to hug her carefully. "I'm so sorry." Guilt crept back into her. She knew she was the reason Kenzi felt she had to break up with Nate. Without Bo, Kenzi wouldn't have fae constantly knocking down their door, literally or figuratively. She had given Kenzi the chance for a normal life, had pushed her to go with Nate, but Kenzi had ultimately chosen to stay with Bo. The selfish part of her was glad, she needed Kenzi. But she was worried about the girl's safety, and rightly so. Her current injury proved that. Bo would have never forgiven herself if Kenzi had died during the final battle, died for her. Died _saving_ her. There would have always been that 'what if.' She could have forced Kenzi to leave, granted it would have been very difficult, but she could have. She drew in a shaky breath, thanking god it hadn't come to that.

The hug destroyed Kenzi's final vestiges of strength, the flood of emotions breaking through the damn. The girl sobbed on Bo's shoulder, holding onto her tightly. Her heart felt like it was breaking all over again. All she could see was his back as he stormed out of the house, her harsh and cold words to him echoing in her mind. Bo rubbed comforting circles on her back. "I'm so sorry honey," Bo whispered again.

The apology reached Kenzi, snapping her out of her daze. She fought to gain control over her crying, reducing it to sporadic sniffles. She pulled back, staring into Bo's chocolate orbs. She bit her bottom lip. Was Bo apologizing because she wished Kenzi wasn't hurting over this or was she apologizing for Kenzi having to breakup with Nate? "Bo, this is not your fault."

Bo snorted, "are you seriously trying to comfort me right now?"

"Yes, because you need it just as much as I do. It was my choice to stay, and a good frickin choice at that. The _right_ choice," she emphasized.

"How can you say that?" Here was her best friend, crying over the love she lost, and yet still defending her decision to stay.

Kenzi let out a breath in frustration that Bo didn't see what was so plainly obvious to her. "Because if I wasn't here to do the ritual, you would be the new big bad we'd have to fight." She let the words sink in. "I protected Nate by making him leave so I could stay here to protect you."

"I'm the one who is supposed to protect you."

Kenzi put a hand on Bo's thigh, unable to lift her arm any higher without causing her injury to flare up. She smiled softly, "Not every time. Even the strongest of the strong needs protecting every once in a while."

Bo smiled, "how did I get so lucky to have a friend like you?"

"Well, some people are just blessed to know me," Kenzi smirked, flicking some of her hair back over her shoulder with a cocky attitude. "Think about it this way Bo, without you, I never would have even found Nate."

"What do you mean?"

"The only reason I ran into him was because I was auditioning musicians for your surprise birthday party. When else would I ever need to hire a band? I met Nate because of you. Being with him gave me happiness for a while, and I wouldn't trade that for anything, pain and all. It was worth every second," she wiped away a stray tear, good memories of her and Nate together replaying in her mind.

"Then why didn't you go with him?" Bo asked earnestly.

"Because you need me, and I need you. Sure, maybe Nate and I could have lasted, but romantic relationships tend to end badly, and then where would I be? Boyfriends come and go but sisters last forever," she smiled. "Hoes over bros right? So whether you like it or not, you're stuck with me babe."

Bo quirked an eyebrow, "did you just call me a ho?"

"Well you are a succubus."

Bo's jaw dropped, "hey!"

"What you take offense to your own species name now?"

"No, I take offense to being called a ho," Bo crossed her arms over her chest in mock hurt.

"It's not a diss sweetie, just a statement of fact," Kenzi said smugly.

Bo gasped, never ceasing to be amazed by the words that fly out of her best friend's mouth. She was just glad to see Kenzi's sarcastic wit making a comeback; it meant Kenzi was feeling better. It was reassuring during a time when both women could have lost everything. Their banter back and forth provided a much needed distraction from all of the pain and heartache they had gone and were still going through.


	8. Chapter 8

Author's Note: My sincerest apologies for the very late update. Graduate school is kicking my butt. I'll try to be better at updating but final exams/essays/projects are coming up very soon. Thank you for sticking with this story and for your continued support. I hope you like this latest chapter.

CHAPTER 8

Bo finished washing the bowl she used for Kenzi's soup, placing it on the rack to dry. Her head titled up in the direction of the ceiling when she heard light footsteps. Eyebrows furrowed, she ran upstairs, turning the corner to see Kenzi slowly making her way down the hall. She stepped out in the front of the younger woman, effectively blocking her path. "And where do you think you're going?"

Kenzi rolled her eyes, "I ate soup, drank a crap load of water, and had an IV. I have to take a piss that will put Niagra Falls to shame."

"You're going to the bathroom on your own?" Bo asked, unsure whether her friend should be up and walking around or not.

"Last time I checked, I was still potty trained," Kenzi answered sarcastically.

"You know that's not what I meant," Bo frowned.

Kenzi reached out, patting the succubus's arm, "I know Bo-Bo. Thank you for worrying, but I'll be fine. It's just the bathroom. I've faced worse."

"Are you sure?" she questioned one last time.

"You know I love you and we share basically everything," she paused for a second, scrunching up her face, "but there's some things I need to keep personal and this is one of them."

"Okay, but I'll be-"

"-waiting right outside the door, I know," Kenzi smirked, finishing her best friend's sentence for her.

Bo finally smiled, "you're impossible."

Kenzi returned the gesture, "you're just now learning this?" She walked past Bo, turning the corner into the bathroom.

Bo shook her head, leaning up against the wall while she waited for Kenzi to finish. She felt her phone vibrate in her pocket. Fishing it out, she pulled up a text message from Lauren that read "I'll be by after work to check on Kenzi. See you then." She smiled at the message, happy that she was going to see Lauren and that Kenzi was going to receive more medical care. She loved Kenzi like a sister, but trying to get her to sit still required 24/7 surveillance. She thought back to when her best friend had just gotten the antidote for basilisk poison. Lauren had told Bo to make sure that Kenzi took it easy for a while and even then, Bo knew that was going to be a difficult task. Ever since Bo had met Kenzi, she had known that the girl was a go-getter and very active. She became fidgety if she sat still for an extended period of time. Maybe that had to do with her past and living on the streets; she was sure that Kenzi, like herself, must have had to move a lot. It probably wasn't safe to stay in one place too long.

She was quickly brought out of her thoughts when she heard Kenzi's anxiety-filled voice, "what the hell?!"

"Kenzi?" Bo called. She hurried into the bathroom, not caring if the younger woman was decent or not. "What's wrong?" Kenzi stood in front of the mirror examining her black and orange splotched arm, the white bandage previously surrounding it lay discarded on the floor. Her wide eyes met Bo's, seeking answers to the many questions that bombarded her mind. Bo approached her slowly, "Kenzi, it's going to be okay."

"Really?! Because I seriously doubt it!" Kenzi exclaimed, her voice high pitched. "I mean, have you _seen_ my arm?!" She held out the offending appendage for emphasis.

Bo held her hands up in a claming manner, "I know Kenz, I know. Just take a deep breath. We're going to figure this out together."

Kenzi drew her arm back to her, running her fingers over her damaged skin, feeling the bumps and calluses. The dark spots were hard and crusty while the orange part was tender and overly sensitive. She hissed slightly when she touched a particularly badly burned area. Bo was at her side in an instant. Kenzi lifted her head up. "It looks dead," she whispered.

"I know what it looks like, but it hurt just now for you to touch it right?" she waited for Kenzi to nod. "Then that means it's not dead. Lauren took a sample from your arm while you were unconscious so she could find out what's doing this. If anyone can figure out what's wrong and how to fix it, it's her," Bo reassured her. She pulled Kenzi into her arms, rubbing her back. "We'll get through this." Kenzi took a deep albeit shaky breath, trying to stop the anxious feeling rising in her gut. "Let's get you back to bed, okay?" Kenzi didn't respond. Bo kept one arm wrapped around the smaller girl's shoulders while she led her back to her bedroom. They both sat down on the bed close to each other. Bo bit her bottom lip, the lack of noise in the room making her uneasy. Kenzi was always talkative, so the fact that no words were coming out of her mouth was worrisome. She just continued to stare blankly at her arm, as if she were in a trance. "Kenzi?" Bo asked softly, trying to break her concentration. She placed a hand on Kenzi's thigh, repeating her name. Kenzi blinked a few times, coming back to reality. She turned her head towards Bo. "Hey, it's going to be okay." She used her other hand to smooth out the woman's raven hair. Knowing the sight of her arm was bothering Kenzi, she asked "do you want me to cover it back up?"

Kenzi pursed her lips, glancing back to her marred skin once more. "Please," she spoke softly.

Bo patted Kenzi's leg, getting up to go get a fresh bandage from the medical supplies Lauren had left at the clubhouse. She reentered the room, taking her place by Kenzi's side. She gently placed gauze over the burns before wrapping the length of her arm from wrist to elbow in an ace bandage. "Better?"

Kenzi nodded, releasing the breath she didn't know she was holding. "I'm sorry, I just…I don't even know," she groaned in frustration, unable to explain why she was reacting to her arm the way she was. She had faced many different types of fae, some human-looking and some that resembled monsters that haunted children's nightmares, but never had she froze when she encountered them. Yet here she was, silently freaking out over the current state of her limb. It's not like she had never been sick or injured by a fae; she's had blood streaming from her eyes and most recently, a large gash to her abdomen that was still healing. Despite all of this, the grotesque sight of her burned skin chilled her to the bone. Maybe it wasn't the fact she was hurt, she tried to rationalize, but rather the fact of who had caused the injury. Most fae, those with common sense, were terrified of the Norn and knew not to mess with her. If fae were afraid of her, what could she do to a mere human?

Bo shook her head, "you don't need to explain. I get it. Can you do me one favour though? Can you tell me how you got that? What happened?"

Kenzi closed her eyes for a moment, composing herself. "Okay," she agreed, knowing she owed Bo that much at the very least. Not knowing exactly how to start, she backtracked to Ciara's funeral. Blurting out that she went to see the Norn before giving an explanation as to why she went there would only cause Bo to freak out and bombard her with questions. "After the funeral, I went to see Dyson. He was in rough shape, blaming himself for Ciara's death. I was tired of seeing him suffer and you needed him to be the warrior you fell in love with, so I told him we needed to see the Norn."

Bo's jaw dropped. Her eyes widened, orbs dancing with fear for her best friend. "Did she…is that how…?"

"Yeah," Kenzi answered the unfinished question dejectedly. "Just let me finish before you start with the 21 questions okay? This is hard enough for me to say without having to pause during it."

"Okay," Bo said in understanding.

"We went to the Norn, and she refused to give back Dyson's love as expected. So I tried to make a deal with her."

"A deal?! Kenzi, you didn't!" Bo interrupted, shocked her best friend would offer the Norn a piece of herself in exchange for making Dyson whole again. If Bo couldn't get Dyson's love back, how could she ever hope to save Kenzi from a similar fate?

"No no no! Not that kind of deal. I tried to trade her Ciara's bracelet, that's all. I wouldn't give that witchy bitch anything of mine, don't worry," she half smiled reassuringly. "She refused and we left. That's when I met you back here before you went Glaive hunting."

"Wait, before you left here you said something about having to go to the hardware store," Bo said puzzled. She narrowed her eyes. "What did you do?" she asked, worry lacing her voice.

Kenzi gave her a look, "you're not very good at this not interrupting thing are you?"

Bo pressed her lips together tightly. "Right, no questions. Sorry."

"Well the Norn has this ginormous tree in her living room." Kenzi grimaced, "so I bought a chainsaw."

"You what?!" Bo asked in disbelief.

"Bo…" Kenzi started.

"You cut her tree down?!"

"I didn't cut it down, I just hacked it up a bit. Apparently she and her tree are connected so that when one gets hurt, the other one does too. Now the advantage was on my end and she wanted to make a deal with me: she would give me Dyson's love back if I stopped slicing and dicing her tree. I followed her back to her storage room. Seriously Bo, you should see how many jars she has from her trades. There are so many fae out there wandering around with a piece of themselves missing," she said empathetically. During the body switching debacle with Raynard, she had experienced the emptiness inside of Dyson. She couldn't imagine having to live with that for a thousand years. "She offered to make a trade with me, but there was no way in hell I'd do that. She found Dyson's jar," Kenzi bit her lip, knowing the next part she had to tell was an accident, but also made her look a bit stupid. "I took it, and accidentally backed up into a cabinet that apparently held even more jars. One fell and smashed; some of it got on my arm."

Bo pushed aside the idea of Dyson having his love back in order to focus on the imminent threat to Kenzi's life. Her face was somber. "What was it?" she asked softly.

"I don't know," Kenzi replied, fear lacing her voice. "It was black goop. It bubbled and hissed when it touched the ground. I tried to wipe it off. Then the Norn gave me this evil grin and said "a gift has been given" all cryptic and crap. It didn't sound good Bo."

Bo shuddered; nothing from the Norn, not even a so-called gift, could ever be good. "Why didn't you tell me?"

"I wanted to, but it wasn't my story to tell; it's Dyson's," Kenzi explained her reluctance to confide in Bo. Kenzi didn't feel it was her place to inform Bo that Dyson had his love back; it was something that was too personal. It would be hard to explain her facing off with the Norn without dropping that bombshell on Bo.

"No," Bo stated adamantly, "this is very much your story and you have the right to tell who ever you want. Kenzi, this is serious. What if that stuff in the jar was poisonous, or sent you into a coma? I could have lost you without ever knowing something was even wrong!" She could feel herself beginning to lose her battle to stay calm. The mere idea of losing Kenzi sent her mind whirling.

"Bo, I'm sorry. I honestly didn't think anything was going to happen. I felt perfectly fine. There was no pain, no rash, no nothing. I guess I just wanted to believe that nothing would happen so badly that I ignored it completely. Ignorance is bliss right?" she replied sheepishly, knowing it was a lame excuse.

The succubus sighed, composing herself. "Remaining ignorant in the fae world is one of the most dangerous things you can do. When you first met me, I knew nothing about the fae and how they live, and you saw first-hand how much trouble we both got into. We didn't know what to do or how to do it. There's all these rules and traditions that we knew nothing about and on multiple occasions, that lack of knowledge almost got us killed. Like when I invoked agalam during La Shoshain and unknowingly agreed to forfeit my life if Sean and Liam didn't forgive each other or when you accidentally ate foot soup."

Kenzi grimaced at the last example, choosing to focus on that instead of thinking back to Sean being murdered right in front of her while she could do nothing but watch the life drain out of him. "I know. I just wanted to do something for you, and for Dyson, without it backfiring in my face. I'm not just a powerless human, I'm more than that. And I'm tired of not being able to help the people I care about."

Bo placed her hand on Kenzi's thigh, "I've never thought of you as just a human and I never could; you are so much more than that. You don't need to prove that to me or to anyone else. I know you're strong, courageous, and fiercely loyal to your friends. Kenz, I know you want to help, and there are plenty of ways you can do that. But this, going up against the Norn? This is a fae most other fae are even afraid of. She could have easily killed you," she stated, her voice breaking. "And that I couldn't bare."

"I'm sorry, I should have thought it through. All I could focus on was that you were going up against the biggest baddie anyone has ever faced and you needed your team to be one hundred percent on their game. In Dyson's condition and state of mind, he obviously wasn't. You needed him whole. Dyson being on his A-game meant a better chance we'd all make it out alive, a better chance that you would survive," Kenzi tried to explain her rationale of thinking.

"I know you were worried, but as much as you were worried about me, I was worried about you. I wish I had known about this sooner."

"Bo, you had enough on your plate without having to worry about me turning into a one eyed, one horned flying purple people eater."

"Kenzi…" Bo lightly admonished, knowing her friend's words weren't meant as a joke but were merely Kenzi's way of dealing with things. "You should have told me before we fought the Garuda."

"Would you have let me go into battle knowing I was already injured?"

"No! of course not."

Kenzi touched Bo's arm gently, "exactly. You needed me."

"I need you _alive_ Kenz," she stressed. "What if this flared up and prevented you from being able to fight, to protect yourself?"

"That was a chance I was obviously willing to take. And it's a good thing I did or else you woulda gone all Super Succubus on the world."

"And what if that Norn jar contained something that prevented blood clotting? With the injury you received from going to face the Garuda with me, you would have been dead within minutes!" Bo argued back, feeling an intense need to make Kenzi see how rash her decision was. "You wouldn't have been able to perform the ritual so I still would have gone 'Super Succubus'," she quoted her friend's phrase, "and I would have lost you too. Everybody loses." Seeing Kenzi's demeanor change, she took a deep breath. "Look, I know you're used to living on the streets and you came from a home where it seemed no one cared, but you need to realise that I care, and I will never stop caring about you. If you had died that night, no ritual could have saved me," emotion clouded her eyes. "Nothing could have brought me back from the dark place your death would send me. Without you, I'm broken."

"I…" Kenzi stuttered, not knowing what to say. "Bo, I'm so so sorry," she whispered, overwhelmed by how fiercely Bo loved her and by how her actions could unwittingly cause her best friend so much pain. "I never thought about it that way. I would never want to hurt you. I just wanted you to be safe, to come back alive and be the same Bo we all know and love. You turning dark, becoming like your mother, turning against us, I just…I can't even imagine it," her body trembled slightly just thinking about it. "When you made promise to kill you if you were too far gone, I decided then and there that I would do anything to make sure it didn't come to that. If I had to do it all over again, I'm sorry, but I would still choose the same."

Bo nodded in understanding, a tear streaming down her face. If she was faced with a similar choice she would always choose the scenario in which Kenzi survived, so how could she tell Kenzi to do otherwise? Instead of trying to argue with her, she just pulled the smaller girl into her arms, hugging her tightly.


End file.
